


Sprained

by FragmentedStars



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Hinata freaks out because Kags is being too nice, Injury Recovery, Kageyama is worried, Living Together, M/M, Mostly Fluff, Rating May Change, Suga Momma in full fource, Tsukishima the grumpy goat, more tags to be added later, natsu is the best character, sprained ankle
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-12
Updated: 2017-02-07
Packaged: 2018-08-14 13:59:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,024
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8016769
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FragmentedStars/pseuds/FragmentedStars
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Hinata isn't known for being the most coordinated, or the most careful, but nobody could have expected that he would sprain his ankle, or what the outcome would be. Left with no choice, Kageyama offers something he has never shared with anyone before: his home. Suddenly, things aren't the way they were before. Or is this how it was meant to be all along?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Tied

Feet pounded against the pavement, pebbles flying as a trail of dust filled the cool morning air. Two boys flew through the school gates and tore their way through the courtyard, the gym growing closer with every step, their haggard breaths interrupted only by the insults they shouted at each other zealously. The smaller of the two stumbled briefly, his foot catching on a cobblestone, and the dark haired one took the lead, his grin growing as his victory was assured. Not one to be beaten that easily, the red head pushed himself as hard as he could, his calves burning with every labored stride, until they were neck and neck. 

“Get out of my way, Bakageyama!” he gasped. 

“No way, Dumbass,” the other boy grunted, fighting back the nauseous feeling in his stomach that told him he had pushed himself a bit too far. 

The gym doors were mere yards away and the two threw their all into it, the world passing in a blur, hyper focused on their goal- 

“Tie!” roared Tanaka, throwing his shirt up in the air like a Grand Marshall at a race. 

The two fell to the ground in a heap, Hinata sprawled across Kageyama’s back. “What? No way!” Hinata cried, glaring at Tanaka. “I totally beat him!” 

“No way, I got here first,” Kageyama groused, his lips pulled into a pout. 

“Sorry guys, it was definitely a tie!” Tanaka shrugged, shaking his head. “Looks like you’ll just have to settle the score tomorrow.” 

“If I hadn’t tripped on that stupid rock, I totally would have won,” Hinata mumbled, his eyes shooting daggers at the boy beneath him. 

“I don’t even have to see your stupid face to know you’re making stupid faces right now,” Kageyama smirked, trying to sit up to no avail. “Would you stop pouting and get off me?” 

With an overly dramatic groan Hinata pushed himself off of the ground and attempted to stand before falling again with a sharp cry of pain. 

“Hinata, are you ok?” Suga cried, running over with Daichi and Yachi close behind. 

“Y-yeah, I think so,” he grimaced, trying again to stand to no avail. 

“Didn’t you just say that you tripped on a rock?” Tanaka asked, squatting down to peer at Hinata’s ankle, “Because if I didn’t know any better I’d say you had a pretty gnarly sprain.” Everyone crowded around to see and, sure enough, his ankle had already begun to swell. 

“What? No way!” Hinata yelped, “I can’t have a sprained ankle!” 

“Sorry to tell you this, but you definitely do,” Suga said gently. “I’ve seen a lot of them and yours fits the bill.” 

“But…” Hinata began, his lip quivering. 

“Kageyama, Yachi, can you help get him to the infirmary? Wait and hear what the nurse says, then report back to me. And Hinata?” Daichi turned towards the red head, his expression softening, “Just focus on healing and we will figure it out as we go, ok?” 

Hinata nodded numbly, his face crestfallen. He couldn’t believe this was happening. 

Kageyama and Yachi both took one of his arms and helped him hobble to the infirmary in silence, both knowing him well enough to know better than to try and talk to him when he was like this. They lowered him onto the bench outside of the nurse’s office and Yachi left the two boys behind while she went inside to let the nurse know what was going on. 

Hinata peeked up at Kageyama, the sudden realization that a sprained ankle was the least of his concerns hitting him like a truck. _Oh man, he’s probably so pissed at me for hurting myself! Now I can’t play and I’m totally useless and-_

“Whatever it is that you’re thinking, knock it off,” Kageyama sighed, “I can practically feel your anxiety levels from over here.” He crossed the hallway and sat next to Hinata, not looking at him. “It could have just have easily been me, if we had switched sides. It was an accident. So if you have it in your head that I’m mad, get over it.” 

“You’re not mad… not even a little bit?” Hinata asked, glancing at him and trying to read his expression. 

“Well, I’m a little mad, but not at you. I’m just mad it happened, I guess,” he mumbled. 

Hinata stared at him, wide eyed. That was definitely not what he had expected, not one bit. In all the time he had known Kageyama he had learned that he was quick to anger and irritation and that even though he usually had the best intentions, foul moods were his default. He wondered if maybe when he had fallen on him he had hit his head. Hinata was about to ask if the nurse should check him out while they were there when Yachi stepped into the hallway, her face pinched with worry. “Hinata, Kageyama, she’s ready for us now.” 

Kageyama offered his arm and Hinata took it gratefully and limped cautiously into the office, where the nurse had a bed ready for him to sit on. 

“Shouyou, please have a seat,” she said with a worried smile, motioning him forward. “So, your assistant team manager gave me a quick rundown of what happened but I’d like you to give me some details if you can.” 

“Sure,” Hinata replied and filled her in, racking his mind for anything that might help. She nodded often and jotted things down on her notepad, breathing a sigh of relief when he confirmed that he had not heard or felt a crack when it happened, and that it didn’t look much different than usual outside of the swelling. Once he had answered her questions she examined it carefully, sending Hinata apologetic smiles when her prodding caused him to wince in pain. 

“Well, there’s good news and bad news. It definitely isn’t broken, but it is sprained. And by the looks of it, I’d say it’s a Class Three sprain, Class Two at best.” 

“How many classes are there?” Kageyama asked, his brow furrowed. 

“Three.” 

Hinata groaned and dropped his face into his hands. “I was hoping you’d say ten.” 

“Look, I know how scary this sounds but I promise that it will get better. As longs as you don’t use it, that is. That means no running, no jumping, and unfortunately no Volleyball.” 

“For how long?” Hinata cried, his hands fisting his shorts in a meager effort to ground himself for an answer he knew he didn’t want to hear. 

“Two months, maybe less. It really depends on you.” 

Yachi and Kageyama stared at Hinata, their mouths open, knowing this would not go over well. He was a Volleyball idiot through and through, and not playing for that long would be worse than torture. Hinata stayed quiet, his eyes on the floor and his teeth pulling at his lower lip. 

“What do I need to do to get better?” 

~*~*~*

An hour later Hinata had been fitted with a bright blue boot and given a pair of crutches which, after a few attempts at walking with them, he could already tell would be his worst enemy for however long he was stuck with them. Forget the Great King, these were the real pain in the ass. Yachi had headed back after his prognosis to let Daichi and Suga know what was going on, and Kageyama had stayed behind, silently watching and listening with an unreadable expression on his face. 

“I want you to go home for the day and get some rest, Shouyou, and from then on I’m going to need you to take it as easy as possible and check in with me every Monday and Wednesday until I see some progress. And don’t forget to ice it and take your pain medications as prescribed, ok?” 

Hinata nodded in reply, giving her a tired thank you in response. 

“Kageyama, would you mind helping Hinata with his books and things? Until he gets used to his crutches he really shouldn’t be trying to carry too many things at once. I will make sure your teachers know you’re excused.” 

“Yes, Ma’am,” Kageyama replied, helping Hinata off of the bed and handing him his crutches. “Come on, Dumbass,” he said softly, opening the infirmary door. Hinata followed after him quietly, still trying to take in how dramatically his life had changed with one split second misstep. He glanced up at the other boy, his expression still indecipherable, and wondered what he could possibly be thinking. 

When they arrived at the gym it was silent and empty, completely void of the usual energy that filled it as if it had its own life force. On one of the benches someone, probably Yachi or Suga, had gathered his things he had left behind and set them aside for him. Kageyama quickly crossed the gym floor and collected them, holding up a piece of paper on his way back for Hinata to see. “Looks like a note for you.” 

Hinata took it from him, smiling for the first time that morning. The paper was littered with notes and doodles from the whole team, even Tsukishima, wishing him a fast recovery and telling him he still needed to come to practice to cheer them on. In one corner was a badly drawn picture of him breaking the rock in half, with a mini Tanaka yelling “Show it who’s boss!” There was another note from Suga, reminding him to get plenty of rest, and one from Yachi promising to make him cookies. He held the paper against his chest, gratefulness for having such an amazing team and friends who he could rely on sweeping through him. 

“I like Tanaka’s drawing,” Kageyama commented with a smirk. 

“Me too, even if it’s not very good,” Hinata laughed. “I think I’m ready to go home now, we just need to stop by the bike stand so I can get my bicycle.” 

Kageyama nodded and, making sure he hadn’t forgotten any of the red head’s belongings, held the door open so that Hinata could shakily make his way through, his crutches sending dense thuds echoing through the empty gymnasium. 

Both silently wondered when the next time would be that they would enter as teammates. 

~*~*~*

It took an extra hour, but eventually they made it to Hinata’s house. The distance wasn’t necessarily the problem, it was the fact that most of the trek once they got out of the city was uphill that really made things difficult. Despite not having to carry his books the journey had been extremely difficult for Hinata, even if he didn’t say so. Kageyama knew him well enough to know when he was really struggling, and observing him on the way there had told him everything he needed to know. 

“Hey, do you want to come in for some water or something?” Hinata asked, wiping the sweat from his face with the back of his sleeve. 

Kageyama looked at the house in front of them, taking in the older architecture that seemed popular in the rural area where Hinata lived, and the small vegetable garden off to the side. It wasn’t huge, but it wasn’t small. It wasn’t extravagant, but it wasn’t humble. It was just a very Hinata kind of house, he decided. “Sure,” he replied, feeling mildly nervous. He would never admit this to anyone, but he had never been invited to a friend’s house before, save for the obligatory “everyone in my class is invited to my birthday” types of things, but he had never gone to those anyways. It wasn’t something that bothered him necessarily, it was simply a fact that he had learned to deal with. The ease with which Hinata had invited him made him think that, perhaps, Hinata was no stranger to having friends over, and a cold rush of jealousy swept through him, though whether it was of Hinata or his friends he wasn’t quite sure. 

“Alright, you can leave my bike right there,” Hinata instructed, motioning towards a corner of the yard where Kageyama propped it against the fence obediently. They then went inside, the cool air of the air conditioned house a welcome relief from the humid air outside. After Kageyama had removed his shoes and set them neatly by the door he noticed Hinata leaning against the wall, trying to keep his balance while he attempted to remove his shoe from his left foot. 

“Here, Dumbass, hold still. The last thing you need is to fall,” Kageyama muttered, leaning down and grasping his ankle with one hand while carefully unknotting the laces with the other. Hinata stayed perfectly still, but Kageyama could feel waves of nervousness emanating off of him. “I’m not going to hurt you, stupid, you don’t have to act so scared of me,” he frowned, looking up at him and pausing when he noticed that his cheeks where tinted red. “What are you blushing for, you idiot?” Kageyama blanched, suddenly self conscious of the position they were in. “I’m just not used to you being so nice to me! It’s weird,” Hinata cried, covering his face with his arm. “You’ve been nice to me all day and said you aren’t mad, even though I can’t play Volleyball at all now for months, and usually you’d hit me and be a jerk but instead you’re helping me and untying my shoe and it’s just weird!” he finished, out of breath from the sudden outburst. 

Kageyama stared up at him, dumbstruck, pulling off the red head’s shoe then standing in front of him. “I get mad when you do stupid shit, or get hurt because you did something you shouldn’t have. Like I said, it could have been either of us. You’re probably more upset than I could ever be about this and I know that. You’re the one who can’t play, not me. And… you’re my friend, so uh… of course I’d want to help you. Dumbass,” he tacked on for good measure. 

Hinata stared up at him, his expression still uneasy. “So we are friends, then?” He asked nervously, “Because I actually didn’t know if you saw me as a friend or just, you know, a rival.” 

Kageyama groaned, feeling emotionally exhausted after such a long morning. “I wouldn’t be here if we weren’t, idiot Hinata.” 

A small smile escaped Hinata’s lips before he grabbed his crutches and nodded his head down the hallway. “Come on, I think I’m gonna die if I don’t get some water soon. You coming?” 

“Yeah,” Kageyama replied, wondering how the redhead could go through so many emotions so quickly without going insane, and followed him into the kitchen. 

~*~*~*

Not long after, Hinata’s mother arrived home from work, surprised to see him home so soon and to find a friend with him as well. 

“Shouyou, what on earth are you doing home? Did you skip school?” She demanded. Hinata nervously moved from behind the counter, where his boot and crutches were in full view. Her face fell as she rushed forward, leaning down to get a better look. “Oh, no, Shouyou what did you do? Was this because of Volleyball? I tell you every day to be careful and you just never listen to me! Oh, my poor baby!” she cried, holding his face in her hands. 

Kageyama watched, amused. Just like his house, Hinata’s mom seemed to make sense too. She had Hinata’s energy, but in a quieter way, and the caring nature that Kageyama had seen in him from time to time was very apparent in his mother. Her hair was brown and fell to her shoulders without any hint of the unruliness her son’s possessed, but she had the same eyes as her child, although not quite as bright. “Oh, by the way mom, this is Kageyama, he helped me get all my stuff home,” Hinata said in an obvious attempt to get the attention off of himself. 

She straightened up and crossed the room to where Kageyama stood, bowing slightly. “Thank you for taking care of my son. He’s told me a lot about you; I’m so glad he has a friend like you.” 

Kageyama flushed, unprepared for the unexpected compliment. “Um… Of course, Ma’am. It’s a pleasure to meet you too. And it’s no trouble at all.” 

She smiled up at him and took his hand and cupped it in both of hers. “Please, feel free to visit whenever you’d like. In fact, would you like to stay for dinner? You came all the way here.” 

“I should actually head back to town soon, my parents don’t even know I left school and I need to get back in time for evening practice. Daichi made me promise that I wouldn’t miss,” he said, sending Hinata an apologetic look. 

“Oh, of course dear, that makes perfect sense.” Mrs. Hinata said, just as the door shot open with a bang. “Momma I’m home, and- Oh! Big brother’s shoe and some other really big shoes! Does Sho have a friend over? But why is he-“ 

A small girl came flying in, her unruly orange hair tied up in two loose ponytails and her wide brown eyes darting around the room before they locked onto the boot. “Big brother, what did you doooooo?” She cried, throwing herself at him as tears filled her eyes. “I’m ok, Natsu, it’s just sprained,” Hinata reassured her, patting her on the head. “But if your ankle is sprained you can’t run fast, or jump high, or spike Kageyama’s tosses, or become the Ace!” she lamented, burying her face in his stomach. 

Noticing the pained look on her son’s face, Mrs. Hinata picked up Natsu and held her. “Now look, it won’t be forever. He will be back to his old self in no time and then he can do all those things. And guess what?” 

Natsu rubbed at her eyes, her bottom lip still trembling. “Huh?” 

“Shouyou’s friend Kageyama is here to help him, just like how they help each other on the court. And I’m sure you don’t want your pretty face to be covered in tears when you meet him.” At that Natsu swung around, her mouth agape. “Kageyama?” 

Embarassed, and wondering exactly what Hinata had told his family to give them such a high opinion of him, Kageyama stepped into her line of sight. “Hi, Natsu,” he said awkwardly, suddenly painfully aware of his lack of experience in interacting with children. Natsu practically lunged out of her mother’s arms, lucky that years of practice had given Kageyama the reflexes to grab her before she hit the ground. She threw her arms around his neck, a cheeky grin on her tear stained face. “Wow! You really are tall! How cool!” Hinata couldn’t contain himself and burst into a fit of giggles as Mrs. Hinata apologized, admonishing her daughter for throwing herself at a complete stranger. 

“But he’s not a stranger, hes Ka-ge-ya-ma,” she groused, her pout so identical to Hinata’s that Tobio could hardly keep himself from laughing. 

“It’s very nice to meet you, Natsu. Hina- er, your brother has told me a lot about you.” 

“Really?” she squealed, and Kageyama swore he could see stars twinkling in her eyes. “Are you gonna stay for long?” 

“Kageyama has to get to practice, so that he can get extra strong for both of us! But he’ll come back soon, right?” Hinata said, smiling. 

“Yeah,” he said, “I’ll come back.” 


	2. The Arrangement

On the way home from practice that night, Kageyama felt more exhausted than usual. Not having Hinata begging him for tosses, or cheering him on, or pushing him to be even better, had made more of an impact than he had expected. He hadn’t realized how reliant he had become on Hinata when it came to volleyball. 

And the walk home seemed so much longer without Hinata chattering away, talking about whatever came to mind (usually volleyball) or begging him to stop and get meat buns on the way home. It seemed so long and drawn out and boring without the fiery redhead. 

He sighed and pulled out his phone, thinking he should check and see if his mom needed him to grab anything on the way home. To his surprise he found a text message from Hinata. Curious, he opened it and was greeted with what, honestly, he should have expected from a volleyball idiot. 

**Dumbass**

hey how was practice???? did i miss anything???? 

**To: Dumbass**

It was fine. You didn’t miss anything. 

**Dumbass**

did anyone ask about me? 

Kageyama rolled his eyes, but couldn’t quite keep a smile from quirking up the corners of his mouth. 

**To: Dumbass**

Nope. Nobody even noticed you were gone. 

**Dumbass**

dONT BE MEAN BAKAGEYAMA im practically dying!!!!!!! 

**To: Dumbass**

You can’t die from a sprained ankle, dumbass. 

**Dumbass**

… u dont know that  >.>

Kageyama rolled his eyes again, wondering how someone could be so dramatic, and was about to slide his phone into his pocket when he suddenly remembered- 

**To: Dumbass**

You didn’t forget to take your pain meds right? And ice you ankle? 

As soon as he pressed send, the realization that the message was more up Suga’s alley than his own hit and he flushed, wondering why he had even felt the need to make sure Hinata was taking care of himself. He felt his phone vibrate and steeled himself for what was sure to be a sarcastic response, one which he definitely deserved. 

**Dumbass**

yeah i got it!! thanks for checking tho /(^o^)/ 

Kageyama’s eyes widened a fraction, surprised at Hinata’s lack of, well, surprise at his sudden show of out of character-ness. Though, to be fair, his freak out earlier had shown that he was at least a little bit taken off guard by it. And, as for Tobio himself, he had to admit that it felt a bit strange for him too. But, he reasoned, they were partners and it was only natural he should be concerned. And miss his presence when he wasn’t at practice, or walking home with him. And continue exchanging pointless texts with him even after he had gotten home, even though he would be seeing him the next morning anyways. 

Kageyama decided not to think about it too much. 

~*~*~*~* 

The next morning Kageyama found himself waiting by the school entrance, agitated, checking the time every few seconds as practice crept ever closer and Hinata still had not arrived or responded to the texts he had sent him, each more frantic than the last. 

“Where’s your better half?” Tsukishima asked, garnering a giggle from Yamaguchi as the two made their way past him on their way to the gym. Tobio glared at them, not bothering to respond as he glanced down at his phone yet again. If he waited any longer he’d be late. 

Out of options he ran towards the gym, apologizing for not being on time, and quickly got changed before pairing up with Suga to practice his tosses. He couldn’t help but glance at the door every now and then, expecting to see Hinata barge through with a dumb grin on his face and some ridiculous story about getting sidetracked by a cute puppy or something, but practice came and went with no sign of him. 

On the way to class he tuned out the amiable chatter of his teammates and searched for the shock of orange hair in the sea of students, but Hinata was nowhere to be found. Fighting back an impulse to peek into his classroom and see if he had simply gone straight there, Kageyama went to his own, figuring the idiot would find him during break or something, irritated that he had even bothered worrying about it in the first place. 

Morning break passed without a single sign of him, so when lunch came around Kageyama decided he might as well go find the idiot so he wasn’t sitting by himself in the classroom. Only, he told himself, because his classmates were being noisy and he didn’t feel like dealing with it today. When he arrived he peaked through the doorway and saw Hinata at his desk, his face twisted up in concentration as he wrote on a piece of paper. 

“Oi,” Kageyama greeted him, “Where were you all day?” 

Hinata jumped in his seat and turned around, his eyes wide with shock. “Hey, don’t scare me like that, stupid Kageyama! You almost killed me!” 

“I think you have a really loose understanding of what can kill people,” Kageyama smirked. “Why weren’t you at practice?” 

“Oh, well, uh, I’m still not used to my crutches so I was a little too late for practice. And I had to get to class so I just came here.” 

Kageyama frowned and glanced past him at the paper on his desk. “Why are you doing homework during lunch?” 

“Um, actually, it’s not homework. It’s the quiz I missed at the beginning of class,” Hinata replied sheepishly. “I should actually finish this, or else I won’t have time to eat. Sorry if I made you worry or whatever. I’ll be on time tomorrow; I think I have the hang of my crutches now.” 

Tobio gave him a skeptical look. “You should leave earlier, dumbass. Are you coming to evening practice?” 

Hinata looked down, shrugging. “I actually forgot my pain meds at home, and I asked the nurse and she said since they’re prescription I can’t get any from her. So I’m gonna have to go straight home. Sorry.” 

Kageyama was irritated now. “Well, I guess I’ll see you tomorrow then.” 

“Yeah,” Hinata replied weakly, “See you tomorrow.” 

Kageyama didn’t see him though. 

Not the next day, or the day after that. With every passing day his irritation grew until he couldn’t stand it anymore, like an annoying itch that wouldn’t go away, and finally he did something which he normally wouldn’t have even contemplated doing: He skipped out on practice early. With a half assed explanation of needing to speak with his teacher because of a bad test grade, met with an exchange of glances between Suga and Daichi, Tobio left with ten minutes to spare, figuring he would be able to catch up with Hinata and force him to tell him why he’d disappeared and skipped practice for so many days. 

He burst into the classroom, startling a group of girls huddled nearby, and made it halfway to the red head’s seat before he noticed that it was empty. He swung around, scanning the room, and saw that he was nowhere to be found. 

“Um, are… are you looking for Hinata?” a girl asked nervously, breaking away from her friends. 

Kageyama nodded, not caring that his irritated expression was obviously scaring the girl in front of him. He wanted answers. 

“He probably won’t be here for a little bit, he’s been late a lot since, you know, his injury.” 

Tobio’s eyebrows rose, dumbfounded. He was still late every day? That was so un-Hinata like. He was habitually early, if only because he had too much energy to sit at home and wait to leave. He was social, and liked being around people. 

Tobio thanked the girl quickly and walked out of the room, checking to see if he had time to get to the front gate and wait for him, and was frustrated to see that class would be starting in mere minutes. “Dammit,” he cursed, earning him strange looks from the students passing by him. 

Not knowing what else to do, he decided his best bet would be to go to class and find him during morning break. Surely he should be there then. 

The following hours passed slowly, every minute feeling like an eternity and making Kageyama more and more anxious, his eyes darting from the window that overlooked the courtyard to the clock and back again. 

“Mr. Kageyama, do you have somewhere to be?” 

Tobio nearly jumped from his seat, a blush flooding his cheeks. “N-no, sir,” he mumbled, trying to ignore the tittering laughs of his classmates and the glare his teacher seemed determined to burn into his skull. 

“Well then perhaps you should stop staring at the clock and look at the board, God knows your grades need it.” 

Somehow he blushed even harder, the laughter of his classmates impossible to ignore now. He spent the rest of the period glaring at the board, refusing to look away from it out of spite, but the moment the bell rang he was flying out of the room and down the hall. Before he had reached the doorway a hand shot out into his path to stop him. 

“Ah, sorry! You might not want to go in there right now, Hinata is talking to the teacher,” a boy told him, his eyebrows knitted together with obvious worry. 

Kageyama pushed past him and stood just outside of the doorway, shamelessly eavesdropping. 

“… I know that, Shouyou, and I’m sure it is difficult, but you showing up an hour late every day is unacceptable! I don’t see why your parents can’t give you a ride to school, they should understand how important your education is if they want you to make something of yourself.” 

“It’s just my mom, and she can’t. She leaves for work really early and she has to take care of my little sister.” 

“Well, I’m sorry about that but you really have to figure this out somehow. Have you tried leaving earlier? You were never late for Volleyball.” 

“I… I do… I leave really, really early but most of the walk is downhill and if I’m not slow I fall a lot or drop my books and it’s just…” 

He trailed off, and without even being able to see him, Tobio knew the expression on his face. It was one he’d only seen a few times, when things got too difficult and he kept getting blocked or missing spikes and eventually got so worn down that it was all he could do not to cry. A twinge of protectiveness jolted through him. 

“Well, I’m going to be honest with you Shouyou, you don’t give me many options. At this rate you might not pass your exams, your grades were already bad enough. There may not be Volleyball for you to go back to when you do get healed. I don’t want to do this, but I think we’re going to need to have a meeting with your mother and the Dean to come up with a different option. Maybe a school that’s closer to where you live?” 

Hinata gasped. “What? No way! I can’t leave my team! I came here because-“ 

“I know, I know, The Little Giant, but to be frank, you are much too focused on Volleyball for your own good. I don’t know if you’ve thought about the future at all but realistically, Volleyball won’t get you far. You may think it’s important now, but-“ 

Days and days of built up irritation, piled onto by his teacher embarrassing him in class, and now this, destroyed any self-restraint that Tobio possessed, and without thinking he barged in, ignoring the shocked face of Hinata’s teacher and the mortification clear on Hinata’s. “Hinata is going to stay with my family until he gets better! I live close by and he won’t be late anymore, I will make sure of it. So please stop discouraging him from playing Volleyball or telling him to switch schools!” He begged, feeling somehow frantic. 

The teacher looked at him with a mix of shock and confusion. “Who are you, exactly?” 

“He’s my partner. I can’t play without him,” Tobio replied, ignoring the look Hinata gave him when he made this omission, something he had never intended to say out loud but somehow, at this moment, seemed incredibly important to convey to this person who wanted to tear them apart. 

She looked between them, considering, then sighed. “If this is true, then we can put all of that on hold, but if you are late one more time we’re going to have to revisit this discussion. Do you understand me, Shouyou?” 

Hinata nodded and thanked her, his face white as a sheet, the sudden appearance of Kageyama and the things he had said leaving him slightly dazed. Living at his house? For months? Had he just made that up on the spot, or was it actually going to happen? He wasn’t sure if he wanted it to be true or not. 

Once his teacher had left the room, mumbling something about needing an aspirin, Hinata clunked his way over to Kageyama. “Were you listening that whole time?” 

“Not all of it. Just enough. Why didn’t you tell me you were having problems?” Kageyama demanded. 

“I didn’t think I should worry you with it. It wouldn’t be fair to you, it’s not like it’s your fault. Besides, I didn’t really think you’d care,” Hinata admitted. 

“Are you stupid? I told you we’re, you know, friends and I’ve been worried that you got hurt worse or weren’t even at school! I haven’t seen you in days and your texts have been super weird. We’re supposed to be partners, Dumbass!” 

Hinata stayed quiet, taking it all in. He hadn’t thought about it that way, and he realized that if it was the other way around he would probably have been worried too. “Sorry,” he said quietly. 

“It’s fine, just don’t be dumb next time.” 

The two stood in an awkward silence for a moment, suddenly aware that the other students had begun to filter back inside and were openly staring at them. 

“So, uh, I guess I’ll see you at lunch then?” Hinata asked, forcing levity into his voice. 

“Yeah, I’ll see you then,” Tobio agreed. It wasn’t until he had made it to his desk that he realized that he somehow had to find a way to convince his mom to let Hinata stay with them for a few months. With a groan, he laid his head down on his desk, too emotionally spent to bother pretending to pay attention in class. He’d already spent more time looking at the board today than he had in the last few months. 

~*~*~* 

“You offered what?” Tobio’s mom cried incredulously, almost dropping the pot of curry that she was carrying from the kitchen. Kageyama sighed internally, the knowledge that he had set himself and Hinata up for failure weighing on him even more heavily. There was no way his mom would let some random kid live in her house, especially one she had never met before. 

For the second time, from the beginning, Kageyama explained the story over again, adding extra emphasis on the injury, how it could have just as easily been him, and that if they didn’t do something Hinata would have to change schools or quit Volleyball. Or both. 

His mom listened quietly, only interjecting a few times to ask questions, before she laid down her chopsticks and leaned across the table, peering at her son. “Tobio, you know that’s asking a lot, right? Not just from me, but from his family as well. An extra mouth to feed, another person to clean up and worry after, not to mention that his mom and sister would hardly see him. Don’t you think that’s a bit much?” 

He weighed out his answer carefully before he gave it, knowing that if he outright agreed with or denied what she said it would be all over. “I know it’s a lot to ask, and I’m really sorry. I should have asked you first. But he’s my partner and I don’t want to see him lose everything he’s worked hard for. If you met him, you’d understand.” 

His mom leaned back and closed her eyes, running her fingers through her long black hair. “I’ll make you a deal, Tobio. If you can arrange for us to meet with his family tomorrow, and it sounds like it is something that works for everyone, then I will consider it. But don’t hold your breath. I really have to think about this. With your dad overseas for work, I already have a lot on my plate.” 

“I know, mom,” Tobio agreed, “Thank you. I will talk to Hinata tonight, ok?” 

“Alright, alright, now hurry up and eat this dinner I slaved over,” she said with a playful wink, and suddenly Kageyama wasn’t so sure that it was all a lost cause. 

After he had washed and put away the dishes, Kageyama ran to his room and pulled out his phone, skipping the formalities of texting first and getting straight to business. After a few rings Hinata picked up. 

“Did you talk to your mom?” he asked, not even bothering to say hello. 

“Yeah, she said if she can meet with you and your family tomorrow she will think about it,” Kageyama replied. “How did it go with your family?” 

“Um, well, Natsu kind of cried and my mom thought I was crazy at first but after I told her how serious my teacher was she couldn’t really argue. It didn’t hurt when I showed her how messed up my legs are from all the times I’ve fallen.” Kageyama could hear the smile in his voice. 

“Do you think you could ask your mom about tomorrow now?” 

“Oh, yeah, wait a sec. I’ll be right back,” Hinata said, and Kageyama could hear him set down the phone. After a few minutes of muffled talking Hinata came back on. “Can my mom just give your mom her number? She said she’d rather figure it out with her than have to go through us.” 

Kageyama smirked, pulling out a piece of paper in a pen. “Alright, I’m ready.” 

~*~*~* 

“Kageyaaaaamaaaaaa!” 

The shrill cry greeted them before they had reached the door, a fireball running towards them who threw herself into Tobio’s arms. 

“Hi there, Natsu,” he chuckled, allowing her to kiss him on the cheek before setting her down. Maybe he wasn’t as awful with kids as he thought. Or, maybe, it was just that Natsu was a mini Hinata and he was used to it… minus the kiss on the cheek, of course, he thought with a slight blush. 

“So, you’re the Natsu I heard so much about! You know, you’re a lot cuter in person,” Mrs. Kageyama smiled, receiving a fit of pleased giggles in response. 

“Come on, come on! Momma and Sho are waiting for you in the kitchen. Momma even made super yummy rice balls!” Natsu cried, grabbing Kageyama’s hand with her small fingers and pulling him inside. 

“Thank you so much for coming all the way out here,” Mrs. Hinata said as they enetered the room, standing up so that she could pull out chairs for them. “I’m so sorry for the trouble.” 

“No trouble at all, I promise. And you must be Hinata I assume?” 

The red head looked up, nervous to meet the person who might be taking him in while he recovered. He was shocked at how entirely similar Kageyama’s mom looked to her son, both with raven hair and dark blue eyes. If it wasn’t for the age gap they could have been siblings. Her energy was much calmer than his though, and she smiled more easily. “Yes, but you can call me Shouyou. It’s nice to meet you.” 

“So, where should we start?” Mrs. Hinata asked. 

~*~*~* 

“I think that sounds like an excellent plan. I don’t see any problems with it,” Kageyama’s mom said, sending her son a reassuring smile. 

“Yes, I think once we all get adjusted it should be ok. I do want to figure out, though, just how much to give you for his food and whatnot. I don’t want to put you out at all. Boys, why don’t you go get Shouyou packed while we talk about the grownup parts of this? You have school tomorrow so there’s no sense in waiting.” 

Hinata and Kageyama excused themselves from the table, grateful for an excuse not to have to sit through the boring parts of the discussion, and made their way to Hinata’s room. 

“Shooooo, are you guys done talking?” Natsu asked, popping her head out of her room when they walked past. Hinata nodded, and told her he would be leaving as soon as he packed up. Kageyama expected her to cry but she pulled a brave face and walked over to him, her hands on her hips. “You’d better take care of my big brother, ok? And make sure he doesn’t take too long of naps, and that he doesn’t leave his stinky Volleyball uniform on the bathroom floor, and that he doesn’t stay up aaaaaaaalllll night playing video games, and-“ 

“ok, ok, I think he gets the point Natsu. I promise I’ll be well taken care of. And I’ll see you on the weekends, and I’ll call you every night to see how your day went. Alright?” Shouyou interrupted, embarrassed. 

“You’d better not ever in a million years forget to call me, ok?” 

“I promise. I have to get packed, but I’ll come get you when I’m done, ok?” 

Natsu nodded her assent then marched back to her room, where a half colored in picture of what Kageyama thought were supposed to be Pokemon waited for her. They continued on down the hall until Hinata opened a door and motioned for Tobio to follow him inside. It was exactly what he had expected, to be honest. The walls were covered in Volleyball posters, snapshots of their team from the time Yachi had brought in a camera, maps from videogames, and drawings from Natsu sprinkled here and there. 

“I already started packing up last night, I kind of figured that it would work out since my mom got all sniffly after she got off the phone with your mom. I really just need help getting some of my pictures off the wall and carrying my stuff out.” 

“What ones?” 

“Well… probably just the ones of our team, I guess.” 

“You see us every day though,” Kageyama reminded him with a quirked eyebrow. 

“Yeah, I know, but they make me happy I guess,” Hinata said sheepishly. Deciding there was no point in arguing further, Tobio got to work untacking the pictures and stacking them in a neat pile. There was a photo of Tanaka and Noya with Asahi in the middle, the two on the outside with their arms outstretched and their legs kicked up like showgirls, Asahi looking like he wished he could melt into the floor. After that was one of Tsukishima and Yamaguchi, the blonde looking bored and the latter flashing a peace sign and a broad grin. A selfie of Yachi and Kiyoko, the girls laughing. Suga and Daichi, their arms around each others shoulders. And the last one was of himself and Hinata, the red head smiling widely with his arm slung around Tobio’s neck, Tobio (remarkably) caught in one of his rare fits of laughter. He couldn’t remember what had been so funny then, but something about the picture made him happy. He set it onto the top of the stack and quietly gave it to Hinata, understanding now in his own way why those photos were so precious to him. He’d have to ask Yachi if it was too late to get a copy of the one of him and Hinata. 

“Anything else?” 

“No, that’s good I think. I’ll be back on Sunday anyways so I can just grab whatever I forgot.” He pointed to a suitcase in the corner of the room, filled to almost bursting. “Jesus, it’s not like you’re moving in,” Kageyama mumbled, wondering how he had managed to find that much stuff to bring with him. 

“Well… I basically am,” Hinata replied. 

Tobio ignored the sudden spark of happiness he felt at those words. 

~*~*~* 

It was late that night when they finally got Hinata moved in and unpacked, his things organized (though judging from the state of his room, Tobio didn’t expect it to stay that way for long) neatly in one corner of the room, next to the futon they had set up. The futon had never been used before, something Kageyama’s mother had bought when he had hit the age where she thought he might start inviting friends over, and part of him felt strangely happy that Hinata was the first. 

“I am soooooooooo tired,” Hinata yawned, sprawling out across it with a contented smile. 

“Then maybe you should get some sleep, and stop talking,” Kageyama muttered, ignoring the dirty look that Hinata shot him. 

“Maybe I’d be able to sleep if I wasn’t sharing a room with someone who’s threatened to kill me a thousand times,” the red head smirked. They both knew that he had no rebuttal to that. 

The room was quiet for a while, both boys busy with their own thoughts. As an only child, Tobio had never shared a room. He wasn’t sure how this went exactly, what the boundaries were. How to keep from driving each other insane. He glanced over at Hinata and noticed the boy looking back at him. “Why are you staring at me?” 

“I’m not!” Hinata whisper-yelled, though it wasn’t much quieter than he usually was. “I was just… thinking.” 

“Why would you do that to your poor brain?” 

“Wow, I’m not even gonna tell you now,” Hinata huffed, rolling away. 

Kageyama sighed. “I take it back. What were you thinking?” 

Hinata slowly rolled back towards him, seemingly pacified by the half assed apology. “I was just thinking how weird it is that we went from hating each other to being rivals and then partners and now you’re um…” 

“Your friend?” 

“Not just friend, I mean… Who else would do this for me? I mean maybe Suga but that’s just because he’s like a mom. You’re like… my best friend, I guess. Sorry if that’s weird.” 

Kageyama quietly mulled over his words, suddenly realizing that there was a lot he didn’t know about friendship. More than he had thought. At first everyone had just been acquaintances, but now the team did seem more like his friends (except for Tsukishima) but he couldn’t say that he could rope his feelings towards Hinata together with his feelings towards everyone else. There was nobody else that he would have defended against a teacher, or missed part of practice for, or let their little sister kiss him on the cheek. And there was definitely nobody else who he would not only let move in, but offer it up and bargain with his mom to make it happen. 

“I guess… you’re my best friend, too.” He said quietly. “But that doesn’t mean that you aren’t still my rival and my partner.” 

“Yeah, I know. Cause we push each other to be stronger,” Hinata agreed with a sleepy smile. 

Tobio closed his eyes, his chest feeling lighter than he could ever remember it having felt before. Hinata had a way of making him say things that were embarrassing, as he was beginning to realize, but it wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. He’d just have to get used to it. 

~*~*~* 

“Tobio, Shouyou, if you don’t get up neither of you will have time to shower,” Mrs. Kageyama called through the door, finally eliciting the response that her last few attempts at waking them up had failed at. Hinata sat up with a groan, rubbing his eyes. “Are you showering first or am I?” 

“Well… You’ll probably take longer to get ready because of your foot so you should probably shower.” 

“Aaaaaw,” Hinata whined, “I was hoping you would want to so that I could sleep in longer.” 

“Don’t be a lazy ass, you’re gonna make us both late.” 

At the mention of being late Hinata heaved himself up, his teacher’s threats still fresh in his mind. “I bet I can shower faster than you!” 

He had Tobio’s interest. “No you can’t.” 

“Totally can, watch!” He said, quickly gathering his things and hobbling out the door. Never one to refuse a challenge, no matter how stupid it was, Kageyama pulled out his phone and set the stop watch. No less than 3.29 minutes later, Hinata came flying in, a towel wrapped around his waist and his clothes bundled in his arm. “How did I do?” 

Kageyama looked away from him, not liking the sudden nervousness he felt in the other boy’s company. It wasn’t like he hadn’t seen him like this before after practice. “Whatever, I’m still gonna beat you.” 

2.57 minutes later, Kageyama was back in his room, greeted by a very disgruntled Hinata, who apparently hadn’t gotten past the stage of putting on his pants and was attempting to put on his boot. “What? No way! You totally cheated, I bet you didn’t even wash your hair!” 

“What? Of course I did, that would be gross!” 

“Prove it,” Hinata challenged, pulling himself up off of the bed. Scowling, Tobio crossed the room to him and held still as Hinata reached up and ran his fingers through his hair. 

“Your hair’s… really soft,” Hinata muttered, tucking a loose lock behind Kageyama’s ear. Kageyama blushed, the realization that they were both almost naked and so close together making blood rush to his cheeks. Hinata stepped back, as if realizing it as well, his face painted red. “Ah, I mean, soft like… um, soft like you did wash it and I was totally wrong, you win hahaha,” Shouyou stammered, not making eye contact. “Ok, well, I’m gonna get back to putting on this dumb boot so I’m not late!” 

Kageyama stood frozen for a moment, his heart hammering in his chest, before he collected himself and turned to his closet, deciding that they must not have gotten enough sleep last night. Clearly that was the only explanation. 

After a rushed breakfast and a short argument about whether Hinata would let Kageyama carry his books for him or not (“You can hardly walk as it is, Dumbass!”) the two made it to the gym without much incident. When they stepped inside everything came to a hault and suddenly Hinata was accosted by almost the entire team giving him hugs and noogies and attempting to throw him into the air, stopped at the last second by a piercing look from Daich (It was such a common occurrence, everyone wondered how it still effected Tanaka). 

“Hinata, the prodigal son returns!” Noya cried dramatically, with Tanaka feigning wiping away tears beside him. 

“I’m so glad to be back! Even if I’m only, you know, kind of back,” Hinata grinned. 

“Why were you gone for so long?” Asahi asked quietly, concern clear in his voice. 

Hinata and Kageyama shared a look before Hinata told them the whole story, ending at him staying with the Kageyamas for the time being. 

“Oh ho ho, living together before marriage, eh? I’d have thought better of you,” Tsukishima smirked. 

“Shut up,” Tobio snapped, not in the mood for this today. He looked around and realized that Tsukishima wasn’t the only one with a stupid look on his face, though, and it greatly concerned him. “What? What are you all grinning about?” 

“Nothing, nothing,” Suga said, waving his hand. “We’re just glad that you both get along so well is all.” 

“Yeah, like, super well,” Yamaguchi giggled. 

“Ok, knock it off everyone. Hinata, come with me, I want to figure out a plan for you with Ukai so that you don’t get out of practice. Everyone else, you know what to do. Get to it.” 

Just like that, things were back to normal (strange behavior aside) and Hinata was grateful. If he was able to practice some things, like serving and tossing (Daichi and Ukai thought this might be a good time to help him become a more well rounded player) then maybe the next few months wouldn’t be so bad. Watching from the sidelines, his eyes strayed towards Kageyama, and he smiled despite himself. Maybe they would actually be pretty great.


	3. The Appointment

After what felt like an eternity of pretending to pay attention and trying not to fall asleep the bell finally rang and Kageyama stood up, stretching his stiff muscles in relief. Daichi had had no mercy that morning, making them run until Tanaka finally collapsed onto the ground, begging him to give them a break. His legs were definitely the worse for ware, he thought, taking a careful step to test out his still shaky limbs. Hopefully Ukai wouldn’t be quite as rough on them this evening, he silently prayed. He pulled his phone out of his pocket as he walked down the hall and noticed that he had a voicemail from an unknown number. _What’s this about?_

He tapped the icon on his screen and was greeted by a familiar voice: 

_“Hello Tobio, this is Shou’s mom. Please call me when you have a chance, I have a huge favor to ask you. I know you’re in class right now, but I’m hoping you will get this soon! Hope to hear from you before too long!”_

Perplexed, Kageyama called her back, wondering what could possibly be so important that she would call him at school. 

"Tobio! Thank you so much for calling me back so quickly!” 

"No Problem,” Tobio replied awkwardly, suddenly remembering why he hated talking on the phone so much. Small talk was not his thing, especially when he didn’t know the person very well to begin with. 

"I know you’re probably busy, so I will just cut to the chase. Shouyo has an important appointment to get a second look at his ankle today, and I begged my boss but he said that there is no way he can let me go home early today. I’ve called around and nobody else has been able to take him either. I know it isn’t your responsibility but do you think you could help him get to it?” 

“When is it? And where?” 

“Just right in town, maybe a twenty minute walk. He knows where the office is. I’m just worried about him trying to get there on his own, he’s still struggling with those crutches quite a bit. And, well, between you and me I don’t really trust him to be honest with the doctor. You know how he is. He’ll probably try to act like it’s no big deal just so he can get back to Volleyball sooner.” 

Tobio grunted in agreement, knowing that Hinata would definitely do something like that. Mainly because he knew he would as well. 

"The appointment is right when school gets out, so you will probably want to leave about a half hour early, just in case. I know it’s a lot for me to ask you to miss school and practice, especially since you already missed school for him the other day, but-“ 

"It isn’t a problem, Mrs. Hinata,” Tobio interjected, not wanting her to feel worse than he knew she already did. Despite being awful at reading people he could tell it bothered her to have to lean on others, especially strangers. “Please don’t worry about me. I don’t mind.” 

She breathed a sigh of relief and told Tobio she would call the school and explain the situation so that they would be excused early with no problem. After thanking him a few more times she hung up and Tobio sighed, not looking forward to explaining to Daichi that he would have to miss practice. 

~*~*~* 

"Kageyama! Hurry up or else we’ll lose our table!” Hinata shouted, popping his head around the corner and glaring at Tobio who was fighting with the vending machine which was refusing to drop his carton of milk. “The damn thing is stuck again, give me a second,” He grumbled, kicking the side over and over until the carton slipped free and tumbled down with a muffled klunk. He reached in and grabbed it, sticking his tongue out at Hinata who was still glaring at him with his arms crossed. 

"Is that any way to treat someone who has to escort you to your doctor appointment?” Kageyama smirked, roughly tousling Hinata’s hair. Hinata blushed, looking away. “You don’t have to, you know. I can go by myself, I’m not a baby!” 

"I’m just kidding. I don’t mind. At least I get to miss class.” 

"Yeah, but… You also have to miss practice,” Hinata said guiltily. 

Kageyama sighed, shrugging his shoulders. “I already explained it to Daichi and Suga and they seemed ok with it. I’ll just work extra hard tomorrow, I guess.” 

Hinata stayed quiet, the only noise between them the clanking of his crutches on the concrete. They rounded a corner and saw that all of the tables were full, even their usual table had been taken over by a group of their seniors. They groaned in unison, Kageyama cursing the vending machine which had given them such bad luck. 

"Where now?” Hinata asked, his stomach audibly grumbling. “I really need to eat.” 

Kageyama glanced around the courtyard until his eyes settled on a tree off to the side, a ways off from the tables. “How about over there?” 

"I don’t care as long as I can eat!” Hinata replied, hobbling over with determination. He reached the tree and, after dropping his crutches, leaned against the trunk, inching his way down until he was seated somewhat comfortably at the base. Kageyama sat down next to him, his shoulders brushing against Hinata’s as he unpacked his lunch. 

The pair ate in silence, preoccupied by their own thoughts. It was interesting, Kageyama mused, how different their relationship was now compared to when they first met. They couldn’t stand each other, and now they could sit like this and not even have to talk and it felt perfectly comfortable. It was such a strange and unexpected development, but he didn’t mind it. He’d never found anyone that made him feel so…so… at ease? Accepted? Safe? He blushed at the thought, hoping Hinata was too engrossed in his food to catch sight of the red tint to his cheeks. The last thing he needed was to be grilled by the red head about what he was thinking. 

He finished his food and leaned his head back, closing his eyes. His brain had been taking him down weird trails of thought lately. He wasn’t one to think about emotions, or friendships. At least not until now. But ever since Hinata had brought up that Kageyama was treating him nicer, and that they were more than just friends, best friends, the subject kept popping up in his mind and nagging at him. Maybe it was his inexperience with friends talking, or maybe it was just that he’d never opened himself up to another s before, but he had this strange feeling that maybe there was something else. Something he couldn’t quite grasp. He groaned in irritation and sat up, peering at Hinata out of the corner of his eye. 

Hinata seemed wholly clueless of the storm in his friend’s mind, happily finishing the rest of his lunch with a satisfied grin. “Man, your mom is a really good cook! No wonder you never buy school lunches.” He turned towards Kageyama, his smile dropping as he caught sight of the brunette’s expression. “Hey, are you ok?” 

"I’m fine,” Kageyama said after a moment and quickly stood up, extending his hand. “Lunch is almost over, we should get going.” 

"I can get up on my own!” Hinata cried, bracing his hands against the tree and trying to no avail to lift himself from the ground. Tobio watched with mild amusement, marveling at how stubborn he was. “Just let me help you, I don’t want to be late and you know you can’t afford to be.” 

Hinata ignored him, his attempts less and less fruitful, until Kageyama finally ran out of patience and leaned down, grabbing him around the waist and heaving him off of the ground. The two stumbled backwards slightly, Hinata clutching the taller boy’s shirt out of reflex, but Kageyama managed to steady himself. He set Hinata down gingerly, not wanting to put extra pressure on his injured ankle, then noticed that Hinata still hadn’t let go. The red head’s face was scarlet, his eyes fixed on Kageyama’s face. “What are you doing?” He asked, nervous. Hinata let go of Tobio’s shirt, almost falling backwards in his haste to get away. “S-sorry! You just, um, surprised me!” 

"Sorry,” Kageyama mumbled, rubbing the back of his head nervously. “I just… didn’t want you to hurt yourself again.” 

Hinata gaped at him, the blush that had been slowly fading from his face returning in full force. “Well, uh, nobody said that you, um, needed to worry about me, you know?” 

"Yeah, I know,” Kageyama grunted, turning away sharply. “I’ll see you later, don’t forget that we’re leaving early.” 

Kageyama marched away, ignoring Hinata’s attempts at getting his attention. 

~*~*~* 

There was much relief on all sides when Kageyama was excused from class a few hours later. His bad mood had persisted, anyone who so much as glanced at him receiving a dark scowl in return. He collected his things and walked towards the front of the classroom where his teacher held not one but two slips of paper. 

“The office aid gave me your slip and Hinata’s on accident, it looks like you’ll need to go get him from class as well.” 

"Ok,” Kageyama deadpanned, tucking the papers into the pocket of his wind breaker. 

"Perhaps tomorrow you can readjust your attitude? I don’t know what made you so cross but you should probably sort it out so that I don’t have to give you detention for scaring the other students,” his teacher said, raising an eyebrow. “Go on now, don’t want you to be late.” 

Kageyama nodded, embarrassed. He hadn’t been lectured on his attitude in a long time, at least not in class. Clealry he had let Hinata’s comment affect him more than he realized. Taking a deep breath he opened the door to Hinata’s classroom, trying his best to smile before handing the slip to Hinata’s teacher. 

"Hinata, pack up your things,” She called, frowning slightly. Hinata was already ready and came to the front, not making eye contact with Tobio. “Hinata, in the future can you please try your best not to leave early for your appointments? You’ve already missed a lot of school; you know you’re on thin ice as it is.” 

"I… Yes, Ma’am.” Hinata said weakly, clearly not interested in creating a scene in front of the class who were already looking at them with thinly veiled interest. 

"Well, you’d best be going. Please be sure to be on time again tomorrow.” 

"Yes, Ma’am,” Hinata repeated, gritting his teeth. Kageyama followed him out, glaring at the students who had already started whispering amongst themselves. He had a sprained ankle, for Christ’s sakes. It wasn’t like he was ditching. It was times like this when he remembered why he hated people so much and had such little interest in getting to know them. 

The walk to the doctor’s office was mostly silent, neither boy interested in talking. Whether Hinata was mad at him or his teacher Kageyama couldn’t tell, but he wasn’t necessarily interested in finding out. He was still upset with the red head, and didn’t feel the need to try and pacify him when he so clearly didn’t care about Tobio’s feelings. 

As they reached the busier part of town Kageyama was distracted from his thoughts by the hustle and bustle around them. They passed a small shop that sold sweets, filled with young children who had already been released from school, spending their allowance on all manners of sweets and cold treats. Across the street was an old man with his dog, sitting on a bench and smiling as passerby gushed about how sweet his dog was, asking if they could pet him. Business men and women walked past them, most on their phones having what sounded like serious conversations or drinking coffee from the cafés that littered the street corners. It wasn’t often that Tobio had reason to go this far into town, and it was a sobering reminder that there was more to the world than just his school, Ukai’s shop, and home. He glanced over at Hinata to see how he was holding up and realized that he was nowhere to be seen. He spun around, wondering how he could have lost him, and didn’t see him anywhere on the sidewalk. 

He ran back the way he had come, thinking maybe he hadn’t noticed Hinata turn a corner, and was grabbed from behind. 

"Where are you going, Bakageyama? I told you this was the office,” Hinata grinned from within a doorway, letting go of Kageyama’s jacket sleeve. “You were really in your own world, huh?” 

Kageyama growled, irritated. “I thought you ditched me.” 

"Why would I do that? That’s stupid,” Hinata frowned. “Come on, we need to go so I can check in.” Tobio followed him, embarrassed. It wasn’t like him to be so spaced out. 

Then again, he was going out of his way not to pay attention to Hinata. 

"Hello, Shouyou! Your mother already called me and informed me of your situation, don’t worry! We’ll get you all taken care of. And who is your friend here?” 

"That’s Kageyama. He can go in with me, right?” 

"Well… usually we only let family come in but I know this is a special circumstance. I’ll tell you what, how about I go talk to the doctor and see what she thinks? No promises, but I think we can probably work something out.” 

"Thank you,” Hinata beamed, taking a seat and motioning for Kageyama to sit next to him. 

He walked cautiously over, taking his appointed seat. “You sure you want me to go in?” 

"Yeah… I’m, um, actually kind of nervous, to be honest. I don’t really like the doctor, and my ankle’s been hurting a lot.” 

Kageyama hummed thoughtfully in response, knowing it took a lot for Hinata to admit to being scared. “Ok.” 

A few minutes passed before the nurse returned, smiling. “Good news, Dr. Toyama said it’s ok if you go in with Shouyou, Kageyama. If you will follow me, we’ll get everything started.” She held the door open and the boys followed her into a long hallway lined on both sides with doors with numbers on them. “We’ll be in room number four, on your right. But first let’s weigh and measure you, ok dear?” She stopped at a station with a scale and a height chart. After being weighed he stepped over to the wall, his eyes squeezed shut as the nurse checked his height. “Well, will you look at that! 162.8 cm! You’ve grown since the last time you came in!” 

"See! I told you I grew again, Bakageyama!” Hinata cried, pumping his fist in the air. Kageyama rolled his eyes, fighting a smile from his lips. “You’re still shorter than me, though.” 

"It’s not my fault you’re a weird giant!” Hinata groused, sticking his tongue out before following the nurse into their room. 

Once they had gone in she set about asking him other questions, taking his temperature and seeing if he had any other health concerns. Once she was done she left the two, reassuring them that the doctor would be in before too long. Within minutes Dr. Toyama entered, her long brown hair pulled back into a sleek ponytail and her eyes kind from behind her glasses. “Shouyou, Kageyama, it’s a pleasure to see you although I do wish it was under better circumstaces! Let’s start from the beginning, shall we? How did this happen?” 

For what felt like the thousandth time in the last week Hinata recited back to her what had happened, ending with what the school nurse had said. “Hmm. Well, from what you told me I think that her prognosis may have been a bit heavy handed. I’d like to get an X-ray done, see what you are capable of doing on your ankle, then go from there. Does that sound good?” 

Hinata’s eyes lit up at her words. “You think she was wrong? It might not be that bad? Oh, man! Yeah, we can do whatever you say!” Hinata grinned, glancing at Tobio gleefully. 

Tobio smiled in spite of himself; Hinata’s joyful hope was infectious. 

"Why don’t you follow me, we’ll get that X-ray done then we’ll do some tests while we wait for your results. Kageyama, why don’t you wait in here? There are some magazines you can read to keep busy, ok?” the doctor smiled, opening the door for Hinata. Kageyama nodded in response, giving Hinata what he hoped looked like an encouraging smile then looked through the magazines, finally finding one about sports that didn’t seem completely boring; only one article was on volleyball but he was a slow enough reader that it kept him entertained for a little while. 

After what felt like an eternity Hinata came back in wearing a mint green hospital gown which was tied together with a few white strings. “Man, that was so cool! I put my leg on this table and this robot arm looking thing came over and was like _Pschwooooom _and took the X-rays, it felt like I was in a Sci-Fi movie!”__

As Hinata explained it he enthusiastically outstretched his arms over his head, mimicking the way the machine moved, raising the hospital gown up so that most of his thighs were exposed. Kageyama looked away, feeling his cheeks warm with a blush. 

"Ok, Shouyou, first I’m going to have you sit down on the table and rotate your ankle slowly, and we’ll see what your range of motion without being in pain is.” Hinata followed her instructions obediently, slowly moving his ankle in steadily larger circles until he hissed with pain. “Ok, not too bad. Now raise your foot up and down, very slowly.” Again he followed her instructions, his face screwed up with concentration. This went on for a while until she had him stand and see if he could support his weight, stand on his injured foot without support from his other foot, and a few other things until she finally seemed satisfied. 

"Those X-Rays should be ready now, I’m going to grab those and be right back,” She said after she had finished making some final notes in Hinata’s file. 

"Man, I can’t believe she thinks it isn’t that bad! I hope she’s right, because I miss playing so much, you have no idea.” “Mmm,” Kageyama hummed, staring at his hands. 

"Hey, what’s your problem today? You’ve been so weird since lunch and even though we’re getting good news you’re acting like you don’t care!” Hinata huffed, glaring at the setter. 

"So what, you want me to-“ 

"Alright Hinata, here we go! I’ve got some really excellent news for you. You don’t have any torn ligaments, which means that you definitely don’t have a class two or three sprain. Your sprain is more of a class one, but it’s on the bad end of that.” 

"Ok, so what does that mean?” 

"I’m estimating that it will probably take around four to five weeks for you to be back to normal, and within the next week or so you shouldn’t need that boot anymore. We’ll play that one by ear though, I don’t want to do anything too hastily. I’m going to give you some stretching and strengthening activities to do when you are at home so that you can gradually build yourself back up.” 

"Oh man, are you serious? That’s so awesome!” Hinata cried throwing his arms up in the air. Kageyama ducked his head down, hiding his smile. He was so happy for Hinata, happy for the team, and happy for himself. He missed playing with Hinata. He looked up at the other boy, and the radiant joy on his face, and felt his heart skip a beat. 

_But he doesn’t want me to care._

His smile faded.


End file.
